A heat dome has locked record-breaking temperatures across Europe, killing 11 people in Britain and France and leaving 10 more in critical condition, as scientists warn that cities and infrastructure are wholly unprepared for what is coming.
The phenomenon — a high-pressure system stalled over the continent, trapping hot air beneath it — has produced all-time temperature records in what is still only late spring. Scientists blame the burning of fossil fuels for intensifying such events, and warn that the worst may be yet to come.
Britain: ‘So crazy the mind can’t grasp it’
London hit 35.1°C — the highest temperature ever recorded in Britain in May, beating the previous record by two degrees. For the first time, the capital also experienced a tropical night, with temperatures failing to drop below 21°C at any point during the night on more than one occasion.
Peter Thorne, director of the Icarus Climate Research Centre at Maynooth University in Ireland, described the heat as “so crazy the mind can’t grasp it.”
The city is buckling. On average, London’s highest recorded temperatures do not exceed 20°C, and the 35°C readings in the capital’s parks are approaching Britain’s all-time record of 40.3°C, set in 2022, which itself shattered a mark that had stood since 1911.
The London Underground has no air conditioning in its waiting areas or carriages, leaving commuters to suffer. Train delays have grown more frequent as overheating causes incidents on the network.
Only around five per cent of London homes have air conditioning, and an even smaller proportion have insulation capable of keeping heat out.
“This country was built for a climate that no longer exists,” the UK Climate Change Committee said.
Water demand triggered widespread supply cuts across south-east England, while a fire broke out near Arthur’s Seat in Edinburgh, Scotland. In Ireland, the national temperature record was broken by one degree Celsius.
France: deaths and a rush to the water
Paris reached 39°C. Across France, people have been flocking to rivers, lakes and pools in a desperate bid to cool down — a trend that has also driven a sharp rise in drownings.
The French government has attributed seven deaths to the heatwave, describing them as “either directly or indirectly linked to high temperatures.” Five of those deaths were by drowning; the remainder were people who died from heat-related causes while exercising.
Wider Europe
Spain’s meteorological service AEMET has warned of “exceptionally high temperatures for the season,” with the south forecast to hit 40°C in the second half of the week. Heatwaves are also affecting Germany, Italy and Switzerland.
‘Records are more extreme and arriving sooner than expected’
Richard Betts, professor at the University of Exeter and head of climate research at the Met Office, said: “I have been in climate science for 33 years and we are now seeing more or less what we warned about in the past. Only these records are more extreme and arriving sooner than expected.”
Friederike Otto, professor of climate science at Imperial College London, was more blunt: “The climate we are living in today is simply not the one we grew up in, and our buildings and infrastructure are completely unprepared for what is coming.”
What happens next
Scientists are reluctant to say when this early heatwave will end. They point to the return of the El Niño phenomenon in 2027 — following the La Niña period that brought cooler, wetter conditions — and warn that this cycle could take a form not seen before, powerful enough to be called a “Super El Niño,” potentially pushing temperatures to levels never previously recorded.
(information from protothema.gr)